All through the autumn, Jeremiah Smith made a really convincing argument that he was the highest highschool participant within the nation. Bodily dominant and a clean route runner, the Florida huge receiver is a large get for Ohio State and head coach Ryan Day.
An enormous recruiting win, even when Smith made them sweat a bit in the course of the course of.
Smith was rumored all through the autumn to be a possible flip candidate to Florida State in addition to a number of SEC packages. The 6-foot-3, 210-pound huge receiver from Chaminade-Madonna had 90 catches for 1,389 receiving yards and 19 touchdowns as he pieced collectively a very excellent senior season.
Smith will play on Saturday on the Alamodome (San Antonio, Texas) within the All-American Bowl (1:00 p.m. ET, NBC). He’s a five-star recruit and the top-ranked participant within the 2024 class in response to 247Sports.
He took visits, together with an early December official to Florida State, however he ended up signing with Ohio State on the primary day of the early signing interval.
“It was a part of the method. Ohio State advised me they’d no downside with me taking a go to. There was the narrative that each time I went on a go to, I used to be able to flip. However I used to be locked in on Ohio State, there was nothing too critical,” Smith advised USA TODAY Excessive College Sports activities this week in a telephone interview following an All-American Bowl apply.
However apparently and regardless of the general public narrative, Florida State wasn’t the primary risk for Ohio State to land Smith.
“The one faculty that I might have given Ohio State an opportunity was Miami,” Smith mentioned.
Chaminade-Madonna completed the season 14-0 and was second within the nation within the closing USA TODAY HSS Tremendous 25.
It was an enormous bounce again from the way in which final yr ended for Smith’s crew, with a 49-14 loss to Bishop Gorman within the GEICO State Champions Bowl Collection.
“I imply we received an incredible, nice yr. With the younger offensive line and the robust receiving corps and a senior quarterback and a operating again – we simply got here on this yr and simply needed to win all of it. That final sport final yr towards Bishop Gorman, we mentioned that may by no means occur once more. So all of us simply needed to work by the season,” Smith mentioned.
“That loss proper there, that humbled lots. We thought we have been all that. We went up there, Bishop Gorman punched us within the mouth. It humbled us to by no means really feel that feeling once more.”